Intel Corporation calls for end to online gender gap

WASHINGTON (AFP) - Women and girls are being left behind as the Internet spreads across the globe, with almost a third of all humanity now online, said a study released on Thursday by hi-tech giant Intel Corporation.

Some 2.4 billion people around the world have access to the Web.

But of the 1.4 billion people who have Internet access and live in developing countries, only 600 million are women, according to the survey researched with the help of the United States (US) State Department and United Nations (UN) Women.

The report Women And The Web, unveiled at the start of a two-day conference in Washington, called for action to double the number of women in the developing world with Internet access to 1.2 billion in just three years.